Frome’s thriving amateur theatre scene is set to welcome a brand-new comedy this October, as Kairos Theatre Company premieres King of Fools at the Merlin Theatre.
Following the success of their 2023 tour of The Haunting of Richard the Third, Kairos is teaming up once again with writer Martin Dimery. This time, he has collaborated with Helen Turner, former keyboard player for Paul Weller and the Style Council, to bring audiences a humorous take on the Tudor court.
“The Haunting of Richard the Third was an intense, tragic piece, so I resolved that my next play would be a comedy,” said Martin. “Following last year’s hugely popular Kairos adaptation of Blackadder, and the success of Wolf Hall on TV, a comedy satire set in the time of Henry VIII seemed ideal, but we wanted to present the Henry and Anne Boleyn story from a new perspective. It was then I came across the story of two jesters at Henry’s court, Will Sommers and Jane Fool.
“Not a great deal is known about Will and Jane and so we were able to invent a fictional storyline around them and it made an ideal platform for comedy. The songs are all original but draw from a number of influences like rock, music hall, and folk.”
Martin’s partner Anne is the founder of Kairos Theatre Company and also directs the play. “To be honest, getting any drama group to perform a completely new show is really hard,” added Martin. “It was only after a read-through of Richard the Third that Anne was convinced that it would work with Kairos. It’s fair to say King of Fools is more of a Mel Brookes-type send up and ideally suited to the company.”
King of Fools opens at the Merlin Theatre on Wednesday 29th October and runs for four performances. Further details are available from the Merlin’s website.
